Curse of the Shape Shifter

A Story by Karl Herzog

A young women who's very attached to her mother resorts to Withcraft to save her mother's life. Expecting to turn her mother into a werewolf to prolong her life expentancy but something else happens.

Anya's mother was gentle, always kind, affectionate and a caring. Anya always appreciated having a mother that cared for her. When Anya she was eighteen her mum discovered a 'growth.' Being the appreciative daughter, Anya took her mother to get the growth checked by their family doctor. The growth wasn’t life threatening but needed to be removed, surgery was needed. Anya was worried more than she should be, her mother was the nicest person she knew and couldn’t stand of her caring mother being in any pain or discomfort. Anya consulted her long-time friend and Witch, Karla.

They were close friends and so late night visits to Karla's home weren't unusual. Anya, sitting on the Arabic style rug of Karla's room bared her concern of her mother’s health. It was almost like seeing a counsellor, Anya would lie on Karla’s bed, her tall body laid out, hands cupped together as if praying, resting on her black and white stripped jumper. Occasionally when revealing anxieties about her mum Anya would brush the long blonde fringe from her face.

"I can't stand the thought of her suffering. I'm worried this might be the end..."

Karla sat on the rug with her back against her closet, spell books strewn across the floor. She looked up from her Encyclopedia of spells as her black long fringe opened up to reveal her ‘Ruby Rose look alike’ face. She leaned over and touched Anya’s shoulder.

“Anya, your mother sounds lovely and you obviously care for her very much. I think things will be okay and maybe you’re freaking out more than is needed.”

While saying this Anya noticed a book on Karla's floor by the bed.

'Werewolves and Shape-Shifters by S.Condren'

That got Anya thinking.

"What if we could get my mother bitten by a Werewolf? It would save her life!"

Karla saw where this was going, laughed but then gave it a thought. Karla always did this, Anya would come up with a wacky idea, she’d laugh but then seriously consider Anya’s idea and go along with it. The two were quite the duo.

"Yeah but those three nights a month your mum won't be so sweet to be around."

Karla grinned, revealing her almond shaped brown eyes. At a distance Anya would often mistake her for Asian.

"Ok but what difference does it make? Three nights a month I’m not much fun to be around either."

Karla laughed.

".... Yeah, I know."

Anya gave Karla a dirty look. Karla cut off her glare, the two couldn’t stay angry at each other for too long over anything.

"Look Anya, you're important to me and I don't want you to be upset... so I'll do something."

Anya had a really cute nose, it was one of her best features and she used it to point at the book like an Irish Setter. Karla turned around, her black, short straight hair shinning in the light like in a shampoo commercial.

"What? The book? Oh, that old thing! I've had that since I was 13. Yeah, it's got a ritual to become a Werewolf."

Anya gave a suggestive look.

"What!? No...."

Anya looked sad, she knew Karla couldn’t say ‘no’ to her ‘sad lost puppy’ face.

"Well alright! But not tonight I need to get the ingredients and stuff. We'll do this next Friday night, here at midnight. It's a full moon that night so that works out."

Anya jumped up all excited, gave Karla a hug and left.

Time went by and Anya's father was sitting in front of the fireplace of their fire light living room, her mother was feeding their pet turtle in its aquarium that sat on top of a DVD filled bookshelf against the wall at the back of the living room. Anya was at Karla's place, ready to commence with the ritual, invoking the power of the shape-shifting spirit into Anya's mother in order to prolong her life and cure her condition. While they were doing this Anya's mum feeding their pet turtle was bitten on her finger.

Time came and went and Anya's mother wasn't cured, still went into surgery and surgeons successfully removed it. She recovered and a month later, during the next full moon Anya and Karla remembered their ritual. Tonight was the time to prepare for the mother to shape shift into a Werewolf. They figured the father wouldn't understand what was going on so they didn't say anything. Anya and Karla waited in the living room with restraints in a back pack while the full moon came out, they were ready. Expecting to hear a howl instead they heard a bizarre groaning sound and a huge splash from the pool outside from the back yard. They raced outside too see the mothers clothing torn up on the ground and a huge turtle in the pool with human like limbs. Anya turned on the floodlight for the back yard and she stood with Karla gawking at what was swimming about in the pool.

"Didn't you say your mum was bitten by your family’s pet turtle?"

Karla finally managed to speak.

"Yeah...."

Replied a baffled Anya.

"When was that?"

They talked to each other but couldn’t take their eyes off whatever it was that was swimming around in circles.

"About a month ago now..."

It was then they both realised the Turtle bight was the same time of their Shape Shifter invoking. It worked but the mother was not a Werewolf, she was a Were turtle!

Eventually Anya’s parents took an early retirement from their jobs and moved to the coast like all turtles, where the mother could happily continue her part time Turtle life.